Senator Murray Announces $26 Million for Washington State Health Centers in Recovery Funding

Funding will help health centers purchase new equipment, invest in health information technology

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) announced that $26,507,595 has been made available for health centers in Washington state. These funds, included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP), will go toward updating and renovating health centers across the state.

“So many families across Washington state depend on community health centers for their care, and renovating and modernizing them will not only help patients, it will also create jobs and boost the local economy,” said Senator Patty Murray. “Investing in construction and new technology for our state’s health centers is not only good health care policy, it is also good economic policy.”

“Washington’s Community Health Centers serve as the health care home for over 600,000 low-income residents of the state,” said Mary Looker, CEO of the Washington Association of Community and Migrant Health Centers. “We are very appreciative of this infusion of $26 million from the federal stimulus package toward capital improvements in 25 of our health centers. This funding will provide welcome, although limited, relief as our health centers are challenged to maintain services in the face of dramatic increases in the uninsured and $240 million of state budget cuts to the health center system.”

"As one of the region's recipients of a Recovery Act Capital Improvement Program award, Public Health - Seattle & King County is looking forward to the improvements that these funds will make in our system of care for homeless and other low-income people who rely on the health care safety net," said Dorothy Teeter, Chief of Health Operations for Public Health - Seattle & King County.

The Recovery Act Capital Improvement Program grants will support the construction, repair and renovation of over 1,500 health center sites nationwide. More than 650 centers will use the funds to purchase new equipment or health information technology (HIT) systems, and nearly 400 health centers will adopt and expand the use of electronic health records.

As a senior member of the Senate committees that fund and oversee health care policy, Murray worked to ensure that investments in Washington’s health and child care programs were a key component of the Recovery Act. Senator Murray voted to pass the Recovery Act on February 13th. The bill was signed into law by President Obama on February 17th.

Total Washington state funding: $26,507,595

Breakdown of funding:

Bellingham


INTERFAITH COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER


$645,395

Bremerton


PENINSULA COMMUNITY HEALTH SERVICES


$861,275

Chehalis


LEWIS COUNTY COMMUNITY HEALTH SERVICES, INC.


$504,765

Chewelah


N.E.W. HEALTH PROGRAMS


$686,590

Everett


COMMUNITY HLTH CTR OF SNOHOMISH COUNTY


$1,355,125

Inchelium


COLVILLE CONFEDERATED TRIBES


$338,585

Longview


COWLITZ FAMILY HEALTH CENTER


$878,390

Moses Lake


MOSES LAKE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER


$1,040,230

Okanogan


FAMILY HEALTH CENTERS


$678,820

Othello


COLUMBIA BASIN HEALTH ASSOCIATION


$1,178,655

Pasco


LA CLINICA/SOUTH COLUMBIA RURAL HEALTH


$1,099,800

Renton


HEALTHPOINT


$2,065,065

Seattle


COUNTRY DOCTOR COMMUNITY CLINIC


$771,290

Seattle


INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY HEALTH SERVICES


$811,120

Seattle


PUGET SOUND NEIGHBORHOOD HEALTH CENTERS


$1,847,190

Seattle


SEA-MAR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER


$2,500,000

Seattle


SEATTLE INDIAN HEALTH BOARD INC


$461,890

Seattle


SEATTLE-KING COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH DEPT


$1,025,635

Spokane


COMMUNITY HEALTH ASSOCIATION OF SPOKANE


$1,203,715

Tacoma


COMMUNITY HEALTH CARE


$1,525,750

Tacoma


METROPOLITAN DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL


$337,885

Toppenish


YAKIMA VALLEY FARMWORKERS CLINIC


$2,500,000

Wenatchee


COLUMBIA VALLEY COMMUNITY HEALTH


$1,003,515

Yakima


COMMUNITY HEALTH OF CENTRAL WASHINGTON


$337,185

Yakima


YAKIMA NEIGHBORHOOD HEALTH SERVICES